Jim Goulart

Thursday's Daily Menu: You can't say there's nothing to listen to after the big league game this afternoon... All times Central; pitchers subject to change -- Nashville: LHP Lindsay Gulin at Memphis (Cardinals), 6:50 PM pre-game; 7:05 PM gametime Audio link via WNSR, be sure to select the proper date (game will also archive at this link): http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/clubs/ip_index.jsp?sid=milb&cid=t556 Huntsville: RHP Nic Ungs at Tennessee (Cubs), 6:00 PM pre-game; 6:15 gametime Audio link via WUMP, be sure to select the proper date (game will also archive at this link): http://www.minorleaguebaseball.com/multimedia/audio.jsp?sid=t559 Brevard County: LHP Chris Cody and RHP Alex Periard in a double-dip at Jupiter (Marlins), 3:00 gametime; each contest seven innings... Audio link via the Hammerhead's feed: http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/multimedia/audio.jsp?cid=503&sid=t503 West Virginia: LHP Dan Merklinger at home vs. Hagerstown (Nationals), 5:50 PM pre-game, 6:05 gametime Audio link via WSWW, be sure to select the proper date (game will also archive at this link): http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/clubs/ip_index.jsp?sid=milb&cid=t525 Helena: RHP Nick Tyson at Missoula (Diamondbacks), 7:50 PM pre-game, 8:05 gametime Audio link via KCAP, be sure to select the proper date (game will also archive at this link): http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/clubs/ip_index.jsp?sid=milb&cid=t433 Arizona: TBD at home in Maryvale vs. the cute little Angels, 10:30 AM local Mountain Standard Time Never any audio for the Maryvale Crew...

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Helena Pre-Game Audio Interview with just-turned 19-year-old outfielder Cutter Dykstra Click on the KCAP archive of July 2nd, then browse to the 13:00 minute mark; good stuff, quite the golfer, athletic mom, speed from her, not dad -- they will be in the new Billings ballpark for an upcoming series...

Nashville Pre-Game Chat with ESPN Baseball Reporter Buster Olney (Part 3 of 3) Discusses the NL Central, Ned Yost, and other aspects of the parent club...

Link while active, text follows: Garciaparra not regretting minor move Stars' infielder picked contract over Vols By Nick Gates, govolsxtra.com SEVIERVILLE - Huntsville Stars infielder Michael Garciaparra envisoned himself as a two-sport athlete at the University of Tennessee until the Seattle Mariners made him an offer he couldn't refuse. The younger brother of major leaguer Nomar Garciaparra signed with the Vols but had a change of heart after Seattle selected him 36th overall - supplemental first round - in the 2001 Major League draft and offered him a $2 million signing bonus. The 25-year-old Whittier, Calif., native is with his fourth organization. Garciaparra hooked up with Philadelphia, Baltimore and the Brewers after being let go by Seattle in 2007. Yet, he has no regrets. "I've learned a lot," he said Wednesday at Smokies Park where the Stars are playing a four-game series with the Tennessee Smokies. "I've got to experience a lot of things you never get to experience in life." Garciaparra isn't discouraged by his inability to reach the majors. "This is my seventh year, and some might say playing seven years is too long but if I went to college, I'd be playing only three or four years (in the minors)," he explained. "I've had some rough years but I've learned a lot about the game that I thought I knew. To this day I still learn things and I've had a good time." Garciaparra was a star soccer player at Don Bosco Technical High School. He had ambitions of starring at UT as a placekicker and shortstop. A visit to Big Orange Country left an impression. "I'm from Southern California," he said. "Everybody wants to play ball out there. I visited Tennessee, Clemson and Tulane. I guess I just liked orange, the tradition, and getting a chance to play baseball and football at a school like that would have been a great opportunity. I felt like I picked a school that was a good fit for me." Garciaparra and Preston Mattingly, the son of Yankees first baseman Don Mattingly, were two of UT's high-profile signees during the Rod Delmonico era. Like Garciaparra, Mattingly, also an infielder, was a supplemental first-round pick - 31st overall - in 2005 and signed with the Los Angeles Dodgers. "I was lucky enough to have a lot of options," said Garciaparra, who is hitting .192 in 14 games with the Stars. Garciaparra is getting a fresh start with Milwaukee and has no intention of giving up his dream. "I feel like I'm an old guy on this team," he smiled and said. "There really isn't a timetable. Nowadays there are so many older players sticking around and taking care of their bodies better and lasting longer. People are playing into their 40s. "I feel I still have something to offer. I'll play as long as they let me play the game."

Link while active, text follows: Text also added from the Helena Independent Record game summary within... Brewers win again: Helena takes second straight from Osprey By CHAD DUNDAS of the Missoulian For the Missoula Osprey and Helena Brewers, familiarity appears to be breeding contempt for the scorekeeper. As the two teams met for the eighth time during the Pioneer League season's first 16 games, it was the Brewers who finally scored the 11-10 win on Wednesday in a peculiar game where seven runners scored on wild pitches and passed balls, both teams squandered good-sized leads and Missoula walked in the go-ahead run in the top of the ninth. The score was tied 9-all in the final frame when Pedro Rodriguez's full-count pitch to John Delaney sailed too far inside, bringing home Brock Kjeldgaard after the Brewers loaded the bases with no outs. Helena made it a two-run affair as Corey Kemp scored on an error by shortstop Reynaldo Navarro during the next at bat. The Osprey tried to rally in their half of the inning, with Ryne White smacking a lead-off double off the wall in right field. White scored on a wild pitch to Alberto Diaz two batters later to cut the lead to one. Diaz, though, grounded out to short to end the quirky duel just after 10 o'clock at Ogren-Allegiance Park. Not that the game was devoid of entertainment, either. It turned out to be a wild, competitive battle. The Brewers hit three home runs, Missoula batted around in the fourth inning and then turned a crisp double play in the fifth before falling to 4-12 on the season and to Helena for the fifth time. Delaney and Erik Komatsu both finished 3-for-4 to lead the Brewers. It was Delaney's solo shot in the eighth off Rodriguez that tied the back-and-forth game for the fourth and final time. Kjeldgaard and David Fonseca homered earlier for Helena. After dropping behind 3-0 in the first, the Osprey rallied to take an 8-4 lead in the bottom of the fourth. Rafael Hilario led off that frame with a double and then ended it with a strike out after Missoula had cycled all the way through its batting order, scoring five runs. Isaias Ascencio paced the Osprey at the plate, finishing 2-for-5. Brett Reynolds pitched six innings and struck out four while walking two. Brewers' starter Santo Manzanillo retired the first five batters he faced before losing the handle on his control. He left after 3 1/3 innings, with one strike out and five walks. Efrain Nieves (3-1), who came in to relieve for the Brewers in the fifth, scored the win. He went four innings, giving up one earned run on one hit while striking out four. Adam Arnold recorded his third save. Delaney and Komatsu led the Brewers at the plate, both going 3-for-4. Delaney finished with two RBI and a run while Komatsu scored three times. Asencio went 2-for-5 to lead the Osprey. Kjeldgaard, who finished 1-for-5, is now tied with Chris Dennis for the most home runs with four. Kjeldgaard, a former pitcher who played the last two seasons with the Brewers before converting to first base, has been picking up steam in the clean-up spot. Komatsu, who is 19-for-50 at the plate, leads Helena with a .380 batting average. The Osprey and Brewers will close out their six-game set against each other on Thursday night, with Randy Rodriguez getting the call for the Osprey. Helena will counter with Nick Tyson, just sent to the rookie Brewers from Class A West Virginia.

Thanks, pogo! Isaias Ascencio of the Missoula Osprey is tagged out at home plate by Helena catcher Mike Roberts during the third inning Wednesday night at Ogren-Allegiance Park. Photo by MICHAEL GALLACHER/Missoulian http://www.missoulian.com/content/articles/2008/07/03/sports/sports01.jpg

Long-time on the radar farmhand outfielder Steve Moss is playing with the Long Beach Armada of the independent Golden Baseball League.

Thanks to rightfieldbleachers.com and other sources who pointed to this magazine profile of Vinny Rottino.

I think the Brewers would love to stay in Charleston for as long as that ownership would have them -- as it was two years ago, it'll be up to the Power ownership group. Last time around, they tested the waters before deciding to offer a re-up.

Getting To Know Your Sounds: Mark DiFelice My good buddy pogokat has kindly offered to give me a couple of evenings off from Link Report duty, although I may pop over with a comment or two. Enjoy his insights tonight, and catch you all in the AM with audio links, press reports and such.

This link will be included in each daily report when the Nashville Sounds are scheduled to play. Normally it is updated several hours prior to gametime. Nashville Media Notes (Adobe .pdf format):

Pacific Coast League (AAA) - PCL American North Division Standings ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Team W L PCT GB HOME ROAD STREAK ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Iowa 51 36 .586 - 31-16 20-20 W4 Memphis 45 40 .529 5.0 21-20 24-20 L2 Omaha 41 42 .494 8.0 17-21 24-21 L2 Nashville 34 51 .400 16.0 17-22 17-29 W2 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Southern League (AA) - SOU North Division Standings ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Team W L PCT GB HOME ROAD STREAK ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Tennessee 10 4 .714 - 5-3 5-1 W1 Carolina 7 6 .538 2.5 3-3 4-3 W1 Huntsville 7 7 .500 3.0 3-3 4-4 L1 Chattanooga 6 8 .429 4.0 4-4 2-4 L1 West Tenn 5 9 .357 5.0 1-5 4-4 W1 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Florida State League (A+) - FSL East Division Standings ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Team W L PCT GB HOME ROAD STREAK ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- St. Lucie 8 4 .667 - 6-2 2-2 L1 Jupiter 5 4 .556 1.5 1-0 4-4 L2 Vero Beach 6 5 .545 1.5 1-2 5-3 L2 Palm Beach 5 5 .500 2.0 5-4 0-1 W1 Daytona 5 6 .455 2.5 2-1 3-5 W1 Brevard County 3 8 .273 4.5 1-4 2-4 L3 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- South Atlantic League (A) - SAL Northern Division Standings ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Team W L PCT GB HOME ROAD STREAK ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- West Virginia 9 4 .692 - 5-1 4-3 W5 Hagerstown 8 5 .615 1.0 3-4 5-1 L2 Lakewood 7 6 .538 2.0 4-2 3-4 W4 Lake County 6 7 .462 3.0 2-5 4-2 W2 Delmarva 5 8 .385 4.0 1-5 4-3 L5 Greensboro 5 8 .385 4.0 1-5 4-3 L6 Hickory 4 9 .308 5.0 1-4 3-5 L2 Lexington 3 10 .231 6.0 1-6 2-4 W1 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Pioneer League (R+) - PIO North Division Standings ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Team W L PCT GB HOME ROAD STREAK ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Great Falls 10 5 .667 - 5-4 5-1 L2 Billings 9 6 .600 1.0 1-0 8-6 W2 Helena 7 8 .467 3.0 5-6 2-2 W1 Missoula 4 11 .267 6.0 1-8 3-3 L1 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Arizona League (R) - Arizona League Standings ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Team W L PCT GB HOME ROAD STREAK ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- AZL Angels 5 3 .625 - 2-2 3-1 L1 AZL Giants 5 3 .625 - 3-1 2-2 W1 AZL Padres 5 3 .625 - 4-0 1-3 W1 AZL Rangers 5 3 .625 - 2-2 3-1 W2 AZL Athletics 4 4 .500 1.0 2-2 2-2 W2 AZL Mariners 4 4 .500 1.0 2-2 2-2 L2 AZL Royals 4 4 .500 1.0 4-0 0-4 W1 AZL Cubs 3 5 .375 2.0 3-1 0-4 L1 AZL Brewers 1 7 .125 4.0 1-3 0-4 L4

Follow Wednesday's action as it happens: Here's what you do, right click on each of the links below and choose "Open in New Window". Open the Nashville Gameday. For the others, choose "Log" or "Recap". While you're listening to your minor league game of choice (or watching/listening to the big league Crew when they are playing), simply refresh your game log browsers every so often. Nashville: http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?sid=milb&t=g_box&gid=2008_07_02_nasaaa_mrbaaa_1 Huntsville: http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?sid=milb&t=g_box&gid=2008_07_02_hunaax_tenaax_1 Brevard County Completion of Suspended Game: http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?sid=milb&t=g_box&gid=2008_07_01_breafa_jupafa_1 Brevard County Regularly Scheduled Game: http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?sid=milb&t=g_box&gid=2008_07_02_breafa_jupafa_1 Helena: http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?sid=milb&t=g_box&gid=2008_07_02_helrok_misrok_1

The Nashville games in Memphis this week, including an archive of Monday's extra-inning Sounds win, are available via MiLB.com's online video package to subscribers. For the remainder of the year, get the MiLB.tv video package for the reduced price of $14.95! Log onto MiLB.tv and purchase today. See over 300 LIVE games and games on demand for the final three months of the 2008 season. BUY NOW - $14.95. http://click.mlb.com/ct/click?q=c0-k_Z~QWPTIwPjNYXA_Br8JmcWHYruHrSR

Wednesday's Daily Menu: All times Central; pitchers subject to change -- Nashville: RHP Mark DiFelice at Memphis (Cardinals), 6:50 PM pre-game; 7:05 PM gametime Audio link via WNSR, be sure to select the proper date (game will also archive at this link): http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/clubs/ip_index.jsp?sid=milb&cid=t556 Huntsville: RHP Donovan Hand at Tennessee (Cubs), 6:00 PM pre-game; 6:15 gametime Audio link via WUMP, be sure to select the proper date (game will also archive at this link): http://www.minorleaguebaseball.com/multimedia/audio.jsp?sid=t559 Brevard County: First, it's the completion of Tuesday's suspended contest at Jupiter (Marlins), with the Manatees trailing 1-0 in the second inning, followed by a seven-inning nightcap; RHP Alex Periard is penciled in to start Game Two, but as sometimes happens in these cases, it wouldn't surprise us to see him pick up things in the first game; 4:00 game time for the start of the evening's action Audio link via the Hammerhead's feed: http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/multimedia/audio.jsp?cid=503&sid=t503 West Virginia: Idle; well-deserved day off Helena: RHP Santo Manzanillo at Missoula (Diamondbacks), 7:50 PM pre-game, 8:05 gametime; LHP Efrain Nieves is expected to piggy-back, with the two swapping roles next time through the rotation Audio link via KCAP, be sure to select the proper date (game will also archive at this link): http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/clubs/ip_index.jsp?sid=milb&cid=t433 Arizona: Idle

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From Brian Massey, Huntsville's Media Director: Today, the Southern League announced the starting lineup for the 2008 SL North All-Stars, and three Huntsville Stars have been selected as starters. Stars' outfielder Michael Brantley will lead off and play right field, catcher Angel Salome will bat fifth, and shortstop Alcides Escobar will bat eighth. The Stars will send six players to Carolina for the All-Star Game after having ten selected. Chris Errecart (1B), Patrick Ryan (RHP), and David Welch (LHP) will also represent Huntsville. Joe Bateman (RHP) and Steve Hammond (LHP) were selected but have since been promoted to Triple-A Nashville. Mat Gamel (3B) and Matt LaPorta (OF) were also selected, but will be playing in the MLB Futures All-Star Game at Yankee Stadium.

Link includes Steve Wendt's audio calls of Mike Roberts home run and triple Brewers' Roberts plates five in pro debut Mike Roberts couldn't possibly have been more nervous Tuesday afternoon, an hour before beginning his life as a professional ballplayer. Off the field for more than a week and unsure how his debut would play out, Roberts struggled to even hit the ball in batting practice. Then he homered on the first pitch he saw in his first game. Roberts made a seamless transition from college to the pros as he homered, tripled and drove in five runs in his pro debut to power the Helena Brewers to a 15-8 victory over the Missoula Osprey at Ogren Park Allegiance Field. Selected by Milwaukee in the 38th round of last month's First-Year Player Draft, Roberts homered in his first pro at-bat, launching a three-run shot to right field in the second inning off Missoula starter Rafael Quezada. "It was the first pitch. I guess I just swung and hit it," Roberts said. "It got out and I didn't think think it was going out. It was pretty exciting. "I was real nervous. I don't think anyone isn't nervous in their first pro at-bat." Roberts joined the Brewers last week but wasn't activated until Tuesday. He said he got exactly what he was looking for from Quezada. "I was looking fastball and if he had thrown me a slider or some breaking pitch, I was done," he said. "He threw a fastball, I swung, and good things happened." The VMI product reached on a fielder's choice and scored in the fourth, lined a two-run triple in the fifth and reached on an error and scored again in the seventh. Catchers don't leg out a lot of triples and Roberts said it was a rarity for him. "I hit another fastball. It just got out there to the fence, and I just kept running," he said. "I don't think I had more than two or three in college, so this is a new thing for me." Roberts became the second Virginia Military Institute player to be drafted by the Brewers after Michael Bowman went in the ninth round. "It's kind of been a whirlwind. It's probably like that for everyone," Roberts said. "It's been a lot different. I didn't have my hopes up to get drafted because once you get your hopes up and something bad happens, it really stinks. But I was happy, I was ecstatic. It's great, I'm really blessed to be able to play baseball." The catcher's big debut highlighted a season-high in runs for the Brewers, a day after they were no-hit by a trio of Osprey pitchers. "I've been around for a week, I've just been watching," said Roberts, who had to finalize his contract with the Brewers. "I hadn't seen pitching in a week and half." None of that seemed to matter when Roberts finally stepped to the dish. "In BP, I was terrible. I was really worried about how the game was going to go," he said. "I didn't have my hopes up. But after the first at-bat, I was OK; it's baseball. It's a lot different, but something I've been playing since I was 5 years old. "That's all I kept thinking -- relax and have fun. Honestly, I just wanted to have fun today, and I did." Roberts had a big junior season at VMI in 2008, hitting .298 with nine homers and ranking second on the Keydets with 44 RBIs. The Prince George, Va., native finished with a .480 slugging percentage and .372 on-base percentage. Roberts said he was planning to call his parents back on the East Coast after the game. "I called my parents before, I told them they better stay up," he explained. "They said that everyone at home will be listening to the game online." Cody Adams (2-1) struck out four and held the Osprey to one hit over three innings of scoreless relief for the win. Trey Watten allowed six runs on eight hits over four innings in his third start. Roberts said he felt partly responsible for the early runs allowed. "I hadn't caught any of the guys that pitched tonight, so that was a challenge," he said. "I think it showed in the first inning; we gave up five runs. It was definitely different, but it's fun." Mike Roberts homered in his first pro at-bat and drove in five runs Tuesday. (Photo courtesy VMIKeydets.com) http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/images/2008/07/02/MOyeo9Qx.jpg

Obviously, Steve Garrison getting hit on the forearm last time out was a non-issue. What a season. I guess one way of looking at things is to ask if there is a single starting pitcher anywhere in the Brewer farm chain who is having as good a season as Steve or Will. And your answer would be...well, there you go. Don't shoot the messenger, just getting folks to think a bit....

Link while active, text follows: A rotation at catcher seems to suit Power West Virginia takes South Atlantic League divisional lead with win by Michael Dailey Charleston Daily Mail sportswriter For much of this season, penciling in a starting catcher wasn't among West Virginia Power Manager Jeff Isom's most difficult decisions. More often than not, Isom tabbed Jonathan Lucroy as his starter. And Lucroy didn't disappoint while batting .310 with 10 homers and 33 RBI in 65 games, with a South Atlantic League All-Star selection along the way. However, on June 19, filling out the lineup card became a little more challenging for Isom as Lucroy was promoted to the Milwaukee Brewers' High Class A club in the Florida State League. Now instead of one central figure behind the plate, the Power will rely on the trio of Uly Snijders, Anderson De La Rosa and Eric Fryer to handle the pitching staff during what, at least early on, appears to be a promising second half of the season. West Virginia currently sits atop the SALNorthern Division standings with a 9-4 record following a 4-3 win Tuesday night over Greensboro (N.C.) in front of 2,412 fans at Appalachian Power Park. It was the Power's fifth straight win. Greensboro dropped to 5-8 with the loss. "It's going to be kind of a three-headed monster, if you will," Isom said of the Power's catching situation. "But for the majority of the games and repetitions, it's going to be Uly and De La Rosa. Those are two guys that they (Brewers) want to see catch. "What we plan on doing the remainder of the year is having them (Snijders and De La Rosa) go two (games) on and two off." For Snijders, a 6-foot-2, 220-pound Curacao native, Lucroy's departure was bittersweet in that he lost a friend but gained valuable playing time behind the plate. "The more you play, the better you'll get," said Snijders, who went 0-for-3 in Tuesday's win. "Lucroy is a good catcher and an awesome guy, but now he's gone and that gives me more opportunity to play. I just want to go out and play, do my job and do what they (Brewers) want me to do. Right now I feel pretty good about the way things are going. "I'm getting more comfortable at the plate. I wasn't playing as much before and it's hard to get a rhythm when you're playing one out of five games. Now I'm more relaxed and I'm just trying to do my job." De La Rosa, who came to West Virginia when Lucroy was promoted, will provide Isom with a more athletic option behind the plate. "De La Rosa is more of an athlete than Uly is," Isom said. "Uly's a power type guy, while De La Rosa is a little like Jonathan Lucroy. He can run a little bit and he can play multiple positions. He can play corner infield and he can play corner outfield. He'll be in there some playing multiple positions. "De La Rosa's been around the organization for a while and he's never had a starting spot. He's always been kind of an extra or third catcher. This is an opportunity for the organization to see what he's capable of doing. "And Uly's in the same boat. He's a young kid that offers a lot with the bat. He's a power-hitting type of guy and the organization wants to see what they have in him. This is just a good opportunity for the organization to see what both guys are capable of doing." Fryer has just five appearances behind the plate this season, but he has settled in nicely in left field and as a designated hitter. In 48 games, Fryer is batting .325 with 6 homers and 23 RBI, including a two-run blast Tuesday evening. Fryer's fourth-inning homer tied the game at two apiece in the bottom of the fourth inning, before Lee Hayel's sacrifice fly gave the Power a 3-2 lead later in the same frame. After the Grasshoppers knotted the game at three in the fifth, West Virginia plated the game's final run with two outs in the eighth, when Curt Rindal was plunked by Greensboro reliever A.J. Battisto (5-1) with the bases loaded. Power pitcher Reed Dickert (1-2) earned his first win of the season with three innings of one-hit relief, while Corey Frerichs recorded his sixth save after working a scoreless ninth inning.

Uly Snijders and Caleb Gindl in a mini-photo gallery from the Charleston Daily Mail

Link while active, text follows: Slugfest: Teams combine for six homers as Brewers roll over Osprey By NICK LOCKRIDGE of the Missoulian The Missoula Osprey were ranked second-to-last in the Pioneer League in home runs coming into Tuesday's game with the Helena Brewers. So, naturally, they did something about it. Unfortunately, so did the Brewers. Helena won a 15-8 slugfest, which featured each team homering three times apiece as the ball carried farther than usual under humid, grumbling skies at Ogren-Allegiance Park. "I'm not used to anything like that," said leadoff man Ollie Linton, one of Missoula's three players to homer. "Usually when you get eight runs, you have a chance. You just gotta play defense and we failed to do that. We have another chance to take it to these guys (Wednesday)." The Osprey and Brewers play the second game of their three-game series Wednesday before closing the homestand with another game and pre-Fourth of July fireworks show on Thursday. The Brewers upped their record to 7-8 and their league-leading home run total to 20 this summer. They finished with 15 hits compared to 11 for Missoula, which dropped its sixth game in seven outings. The Osprey (4-11) were coming off a 1-0 no-hit win over Helena the previous night. On Tuesday, hits were plentiful. The Brewers had five hits in a six-run seventh inning that ended with Helena ahead 15-6. The Brew Crew batted through the order, which was punctuated by Michael Vaas starting the inning with a solo home run for a 10-6 lead, and capping it with an RBI single. Helena was led by Mike Roberts, who went 2-for-3 with five runs batted in. He had a two-run triple in the fifth, when the Brewers scored three runs to break a 6-6 tie. Roberts added a three-run homer in the second and Helena's Brock Kjeldgaard tied the game 5-5 with a two-run blast in the third. Kjeldgaard was 3-for-6 and Jose Duran was 3-for-5. Five of the Osprey's first eight hits were for extra bases, including triples by catcher Bill Musselman and shortstop Reynaldo Navarro in the fourth inning, which gave the Birds a 6-5 lead until the next half inning. Musselman would add a two-run homer in the eighth to help close the gap a little. Missoula tallied five runs in the first, including a grand slam by Alberto Diaz. The bases were loaded with two outs on a Kyle Greene double and two walks. It was Diaz's second homer of the season. Linton homered off of starter Trey Watten to lead off the bottom of the first. It was Linton's first homer as a pro. "He threw a slider that he probably wanted to bury more," Linton said. "Luckily, I ran into one." The O's have 11 home runs as a team in 2008. Helena's Cody Adams pitched three innings of relief to get the win, after Watten gave up six runs in the first four innings. Missoula starter Rafael Quezada had nine runs to his credit in five innings of work. He dropped to 1-2 on the season. Notes: Navarro made three errors in the game, including one on the very first play, to bring his season total to 11. Greene played DH and doubled in his first at-bat to run his streak to eight of consecutive at-bats with a hit. The streak ended with an infield pop up in the third.

Helena's Jose Duran waits to put the tag on Missoula Osprey Rafael Hilario Tuesday as he tries to steal second base. Hilario was out on the play and the Brewers beat the Osprey, 15-8. Photo by KURT WILSON/Missoulian http://www.missoulian.com/content/articles/2008/07/02/sports/sports01.jpg

Link while active, text follows: Smokies get it done First win by Tennessee in seven tries against Huntsville By Nick Gates, Knoxville News SEVIERVILLE - The Huntsville Stars are beatable after all and the winning formula is no secret. The Tennessee Smokies combined solid pitching, clutch hitting by newcomer Mark Reed and excellent defense to defeat their Southern League nemesis 6-4 on Tuesday night. The Smokies (10-4) treated 2,896 to a rare feat - their first win over Huntsville (7-7) in seven tries at Smokies Park this season - and extended their second-half lead in the North Division to 2 1/2 games over Carolina. "I told (hitting coach Barbaro) Garbey and (hitting coach Dennis) Lewallyn, 'Let's go get a bottle of champagne. We finally beat them,' " Tennessee manager Buddy Bailey said. Mitch Atkins (8-6) worked seven-plus innings and yielded four runs on eight hits for his fourth consecutive win. The right-hander is 6-1 in his last eight starts to join Birmingham's Carlos Torres and Huntsville's David Welch for most wins. Closer Jose Ceda struck out Cole Gillespie for the third out with a runner on third base and Tennessee clinging to a 5-4 lead in the eighth. However, Casey Lambert got the biggest out after allowing a run-scoring double to Mat Gamel. The lefty jammed Matt LaPorta and retired the league's home run leader on an infield popup for out No. 2. Ceda retired the Stars 1-2-3 in the ninth for his fourth save. "He came in and shut the door," said catcher Reed, who was 3-for-4 and drove in three runs. Reed replaced Welington Castillo, who went on the disabled list because of a hand injury, and has made the most of his opportunity. Reed is 4-for-11 (.364) with a home run and five RBIs in three games. Castillo won't require surgery and could return as early as Saturday so Reed's stay could be a short one. "It's something I can't worry about," he said. "When I'm in the lineup I have to do what I can to help the team win." Tennessee roughed up Huntsville's Brae Wright (6-7) for eight hits and five runs in six innings. Sam Fuld had two hits off the lefty and two RBIs. The Stars are the best hitting team in the league and a litmus test for Tennessee's revamped pitching staff. Alcides Escobar, who led Huntsville with three hits, doubled in the first, stole his 22nd base and raced home when catcher Reed's sailed his throw into left field . Tennessee took a 2-1 advantage in the third. Matt Matulia singled and Reed bunted for a hit. Wright fielded Atkins' bunt and fired late to third base filling the bases. Fuld, hitting .200 against lefties, delivered a run-scoring single and Nate Spears added a sacrifice fly. Gamel doubled with one out in the fourth and Angel Salome's comebacker struck Adkins in the foot. Atkins retrieve the ball and threw out Huntsville's cleanup hitter. Right fielder Doug Deeds scaled the fence to rob LaPorta of an extra-base hit. The Smokies filled he bases with one out in the fourth and the left-handed hitting Reed yanked a two-run single. Fuld's infield hit made it 5-1. "We got some guys on and got them in," Reed said. "It's been great coming up here. I've come to a good club that is winning."